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Roast dates on bags shape how many of us judge quality, yet sensory tests and barista experience suggest older coffees can still deliver. Here's why the industry's freshness assumptions deserve a second look—and how careful brewing and roasting choices can keep good coffee out of the bin.
How a honey-coconut-cayenne espresso drink overcame skepticism to become a café staple.
A tea promoted for its calming compound offers a distinctive cup, though its health claims warrant scrutiny.
A Milwaukee roaster's three-bag release shows drinkers how washed, semi-washed and natural methods shape the cup.
From gelato swaps to waffle bases and Prosecco drownings, the humble coffee-and-ice-cream dessert keeps branching out—presentation and scoop size included.
How coffee and tea shops are rethinking frappés and smoothies with cleaner ingredients, alternative milks, and natural sweeteners to meet evolving customer tastes.
Coffee shops across the US are experimenting with fruit-forward flavors, and the trend shows no signs of slowing down.
The affogato, a simple Italian classic of espresso poured over gelato, is inspiring chefs and cafes to experiment with flavors and spirits, from boozy twists to matcha versions, while keeping the focus on quality ingredients.
Some cafés are deliberately dialing back espresso concentration. A pioneer of the style now has second thoughts, while others keep pushing extraction further.
Understanding how dissolved minerals in water influence coffee extraction and flavor, and the challenges of designing ideal brew water.
A practical guide to cupping manners and technique, from controlling distractions and following table rules to working through fragrance, aroma, break, skim, and repeated slurping as the coffee cools.
A Singapore technology firm's spectroscopy-based tool captures a coffee sample's molecular signature in seconds, then uses cloud AI to predict SCA scores, flavor attributes and moisture content — aiming to put quality data within reach of cooperatives, farmers and smaller traders.
As espresso technology evolves, some professionals are questioning whether tamping remains necessary—but die-hard advocates and a side-by-side test reveal a more nuanced picture.
Distillers, brewers and roasters are pooling their expertise to create coffee-infused beers and spirits, with collaboration driving both product development and consumer interest.
After nearly seventy years, the iconic Coffee Brewing Control Chart has been reimagined. A research collaboration has produced a new tool that blends modern sensory science with consumer data, offering a more nuanced view of what makes a good cup.
How sugar-and-water mixtures become a creative base for lattes, cappuccinos, and other coffee drinks.
Café owners from Indiana to California explain how they build fall menus around regional ingredients, nostalgic cereals, and holiday traditions—and why a chili-spiked mocha or a pecan-pie chai can stand apart from the usual seasonal standbys.
F1 hybrids are a novel category of coffee varieties produced by crossing genetically distant arabica parents and using only the first-generation offspring, offering potential gains in yield, resilience, and cup quality.
Makers of specialty chocolate explain how bean-forward, low-sugar bars and powders are turning the mocha into something of a different drink from the old syrup version—and what that means for café menus and coffee pairings.
How a young micro-roastery sourced, tested and cold-brewed Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee for a celebrated Speedway Stout variant.
